Table of content
Today, 85% of executives consider artificial intelligence (AI) a business advantage, states a BCG report. But how is it used in marketing? On the one hand, with the pandemic’s start, companies have begun to digitalize customer experience, making it safer and more convenient. On the other hand, marketers use technologies to collect and analyze prospect data to make more relevant offerings.
The best thing any company can do is to learn the latest technological marketing trends, choose the most suitable ones and find a reliable IT partner for its implementation. Devox Software always uses advanced tools, helping businesses become more appealing and efficient. In this article, we discuss trends based on personal experience and expertise and share case studies that show solutions for different industries.
Stay tuned to learn about technology trends in marketing and how big brands use them to achieve great results.
Nine Transforming Marketing Technology Trends
So, what technological trends in marketing should you pay attention to in 2023? Today, we’ll talk about the following nine directions:
1. Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning for Detailed Targeting
Artificial intelligence and machine learning (ML) allow companies quickly process customer data from external and internal sources and generate accurate results.
Targeting is the first thing that is qualitatively affected. According to research by McKinsey Analytics, 14% of users employ AI for effective customer segmentation. It helps advertisers analyze the target audience’s demographic and social characteristics and detect specific patterns invisible to humans.
ML algorithms can also correctly segment the audience according to their needs and interests. As a result, promotional messages become more meaningful and relevant, increasing engagement and conversion rates.
Catchy and personalized offers from Instagram, YouTube, or Netflix are no longer surprising, but some brands go further. For example, online retailer Showroomprive uses an algorithm to determine which customers will most likely leave the website without purchases. Due to company statistics, the prediction is 77% accurate.
Chilean startup Adelaida offers another way to analyze behavior — its Emotion AI uses computer vision and emotion recognition algorithms to increase ad effectiveness. The possibilities of this approach are endless, as they vary from audience segmentation to predictive analytics.
2. Automated Personalization for Rich Client Experience
A practical way to apply personalization is to use micro-moments — short-term sales opportunities that are most relevant to the target audience. The company’s task is to understand client needs, define micro-moments, and propose the correct marketing offer. For example, TripAdvisor provides appropriate hotel and restaurant recommendations as soon as the prospect arrives.
And here are other ways to improve customer experience with personalization:
- Automated customer service helps companies provide instant, personalized responses to solve the most common problems. It allows managers to deal with more complicated situations and improve quality service.
- Another great tool is email marketing automation based on the customer life cycle stages. Welcome emails increase new customer engagement, build the right expectations, and strengthen the connection with a brand. Just don’t forget to use personalization tokens to make your emails more private.
- Personalized offers based on purchase history, personal preferences, and demographics also improve the customer experience. You can promote related products that complement purchased items and share informative recommendations, such as guides, advanced instructions, checklists, or e-books. The goal is to keep customers loyal by meeting their actual needs.
3. Augmented Reality for Customer Satisfaction
Major brands are already taking advantage of augmented shopping experiences by popularizing the try-before-you-buy model. Sephora and L’Oreal allow customers to upload their selfies and virtually try chosen products. Topshop and Timberland use AR fitting rooms to help prospects check how desired items fit their bodies.
With IKEA’s marketing technologies, website visitors can visualize products in their own spaces. And the ticketing company StubHub made 3D viewers of the field from different sectors so that the fan could choose the best place.
AR also helps customers get additional information about the product. For example, Hyundai offers an augmented guide for drivers. Mercedes answers common questions through the “Ask Mercedes” function, based on AI and AR interface. Also, companies from all over the world propose branding materials with virtual elements that reveal functionality and simplify contact with a brand.
But sometimes, technology trends in marketing are about something other than added value but the image and hype. For example, the Pepsi campaign entertained people at the bus stop, and Uber made the taxi ride more impressive.
At the same time, the brand ILVE shows that attractive solutions for online shopping can be provided even without AR. Its configurator, developed by Devox Software, not only allows clients to select the stove style, body and elements color, the number of hobs, and other characteristics but also view the product from all angles. Then, the created image can be downloaded and used when applying.
4. Voice Search and Chatbots for VIP Service
Today we can observe the popularity of voice assistants such as Amazon Alexa, Google Home, and Microsoft Cortana, as well as voice services for mobile devices. Prospects are becoming more likely to find your website or social media through voice search, so make sure your content answers all common questions about the company and its products or services.
Malaysian startup VOX is developing an advanced voice assistant that generates human conversations and generally interacts with the user in a personalized way. It is based on big data and analytics that help create user archetypes and improve interaction.
With ML, chatbots are also becoming less intrusive and more natural, giving the illusion of 24/7 human support. In addition, they collect valuable customer data and analyze it to improve the following communication.
If you are interested in voice search and chatbots, you may also like to know about other web development trends.
5. Interactive Digital Content for Engagement Boost
Every Internet user generates content. And companies to be heard and seen should create something catchy. The most effective interactive types of content include:
- Interactive videos allow the user to play with the content by scrolling, clicking, and dragging various elements. A 360-degree video that shows the product from all angles also works well. This feature is often used by IKEA, allowing prospects to take a good look at items and navigate to the product pages. Another engaging video option allows users to enter data and see more relevant content. Anyway, gamification is a great way to grab and hold the audience’s attention.
- User-generated content (UGC) has tremendous power as people are more likely to trust other buyers’ reviews than loud company statements. This is an excellent reason to encourage customers to share moments of using your product, create a unique hashtag, and regularly publish the most engaging posts on your page and website, as Apple, GoPro, and Shopify do.
- Use polls and surveys to gather valuable information about your audience’s behavior and preferences. For example, you can ask users why they refuse to buy, find out about their brand associations, or just entertain by voting around viral topics.
- Calculators are not a fundamentally new technology in marketing, but they also help to attract new prospects. The HubSpot calculator allows users to predict the ROI from advertising investments, and Healthline and Mayo Clinic help calculate the daily calorie intake. As a bonus, you can offer the opportunity to download a more detailed report in exchange for an email address.
6. Predictive Analytics for Accurate Segmentation
In the past, marketers segmented audiences based on gender, age, or income level, implying that customers in each group had similar needs and desires. But it didn’t work.
Predictive segmentation is a kinda new technology for advertising. It analyzes transactions, interactions, and external data and groups customers based on a high probability of an event, such as a likelihood to purchase or churn. It helps companies:
- Automate the entire buyer’s journey
- Send timely and personalized push notifications
- Offer more relevant content and promotional offers
This kind of predictive analytics allows Netflix to offer the movies and series that viewers are likely to watch — at the most appropriate time. A product ad appearing on social networks after visiting a website or a Google search works similarly.
Feel like your data don’t work effectively? Consult with Devox Software experts. Our business intelligence services include data visualization, analytical reporting, and BI software development. With it, you can see the actual company situation, deeper understand your consumer, optimize business processes, and improve strategic planning.
7. Social Listening for New Brand Opportunities
Social listening is monitoring brand, competitor, and industry mentions on social media.
The primary goal is to get information about how the target audience feels about your products and services, what they like and dislike, and what improvements can be made. This data is helpful for product developers, marketers, and customer support. Spotify even has a dedicated Twitter account called @SpotifyCares that listens to users’ questions and answers them.
But don’t limit yourself to monitoring mentions of your brand. Keyword research helps companies find relevant content and analyze the general mood in their niche. Watching the dynamics allows keeping abreast of market trends and understand which topics are gaining momentum and which are losing popularity, thereby predicting future tendencies. Keep your finger on the pulse to discover new opportunities and threats.
Listening to competitors allows for determining their strengths and weaknesses, activities and strategies, and the target audience’s response. Working on other people’s mistakes and getting inspiration from successful cases is a great way to bring something new to the current marketing strategy.
8. Geolocation Services for Better Sales
Location-based services help display banner ads on mobile devices in a specific area, such as a shopping mall. You can even geofence your competitors to intercept prospects with more compelling offers. However, it is essential to remember that only GPS coordinates are reliable, while targeting IP addresses and triangulating cell towers cannot guarantee an accurate effect.
Let’s check the possibilities of geolocation services:
- You receive data based on the purchasing behavior of the target audience and qualitatively complement the client portrait
- You increase traffic to your store or establishment by targeting nearby people
- You can set up advanced targeting to display ads based on the daytime, weather, and other factors
- You pay only for the result by choosing the pay-per-visit (CPV) model
Toyota has already begun to appreciate the benefits of hyperlocal targeting, and in a month, the campaign brought 1,200 potential customers to dealerships in 3 states. And the No Kid Hungry campaign, partnering with restaurants to fight child hunger, targeted residents nearby and raised $1 million in donations through 129,000 visits.
9. Programmatic Advertising for Effective Campaigns
New technology marketing also includes programmatic advertising that simplifies the campaign launch, providing crucial parameters and data. Advertisers place bids and use specific algorithms to find the most relevant and effective ad placements.
In traditional ad buying, companies need to communicate directly with site representatives, which takes longer, costs more, and isn’t as reliable as they don’t have real-time data.
Programmatic advertising allows companies to:
- Reduce time and money on routine tasks and focus on strategy and advertising quality itself
- Adjust cost per thousand impressions (CPM) in real-time to improve ROI
- Use better ad placements and increase conversions
- Avoid fraud and money loss
For example, Taboola provides access to the largest readership base, with 516 million daily active users and 22 billion monthly page views. As a result, it helps advertisers show their offers exactly when the target audience is ready.
Discover New Business Horizons with Technological Marketing
Voice chatbots, location-based advertising, and augmented reality services look inspiring and promising. But what is best for your business? It is crucial to understand who your target audience is, what problems your company has, and whether a particular technology used in marketing can help solve them. Finally, and most importantly, do you have the resources to develop and maintain it long-term?
Many of these questions can be answered by business intelligence tools. And if you are sure about the website, application, or CRM you want, contact Devox Software to order our web development services. Unleash the potential of your company with emerging technologies in marketing.